18th September, 1829 BCE145Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrs6H1j3HnG
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The morning light spills into my room like melted gold. The air hums with the kind of excitement you can almost taste — laughter echoing from the courtyards, bells ringing in the distance, and the faint smell of sweet smoke drifting through the windows.145Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5rEnDtWLak
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Outside, servants rush around hanging purple banners and garlands of blue lilies. Musicians tune their harps, and someone’s arguing about where to put the fireworks. The whole palace feels alive.145Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqmGPQ0FiYr
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It’s Witch’s Festival Day.145Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrxJjq8h5Pp
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I’ve never seen anything like it — at least, not that I remember. (Then again, my memory is a pretty suspicious blank, so that’s not saying much.)145Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPVqXsKvk0R
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Clara walks in without knocking — because of course she does — wearing a pale lavender gown and a perfectly practiced smile. “You should be getting ready,” she says. “The whole kingdom wants to see the princess returned.”145Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡC4vmgyx5cz
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“Returned from where exactly?” I ask, sitting up. “Kidnapping? The afterlife? A badly coded mobile game?”145Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7NIYrbLQxE
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Her smile flickers. “You really don’t remember anything, do you?”145Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyDHDfoNgj2
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“Not a byte,” I say.145Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBgptuBLhm0
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She sighs — that elegant, exhausted sigh people do when they’re trying not to strangle you. Then she sits beside me on the bed.145Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgAF9zOVJQH
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“Today’s the Witch’s Festival,” she says softly. “We celebrate the day the darkness ended.”145Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡt0pvv8Ybtm
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I tilt my head. “Okay, sounds uplifting. Continue.”145Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡym1HuGx342
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Clara folds her hands in her lap, eyes distant. “Long ago — centuries before us — there was a war between humans and demons. The Demon King, Diablo, rose from the abyss and declared the age of man over.”145Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHaRZq90G1e
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“Diablo,” I repeat. “Subtle name choice.”145Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡh2Yd5TqbKN
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She ignores me. “The world was drowning in chaos. Then came her — the Witch of Darkness. Some say she was human. Some say she wasn’t anything at all.”145Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEOBBXnzPcP
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“Sounds like the type to skip brunch invites,” I murmur.145Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDETRB2AOou
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Clara glances at me but continues, voice lowering. “She was powerful enough to rival gods themselves. And yet… she chose to end it. She sacrificed her soul to seal Diablo forever. The war ended, but so did she.”145Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYTkeovtTC8
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There’s a beat of silence. The air feels heavier somehow.145Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCm4vdIGips
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I lean back, pretending to be casual. “So… you throw a festival for a witch who died saving everyone?”145Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJMh5zQW1zi
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“Yes,” Clara says, looking toward the window. “To remember her. And to remind ourselves that even light can be born from darkness.”145Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡW4Te14eFc9
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Her tone softens, and for a second — just one — she looks genuinely sad.145Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3ygxe2Ah0R
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Then it’s gone. The mask slips back into place.145Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1EsCGox9Pn
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“Get dressed, Ariana,” she says, standing up. “The people are waiting.”145Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9uUXuww2XA
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I watch her leave, the silk of her gown whispering against the floor.145Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzr738NuQg4
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The Witch of Darkness, huh?145Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIamsJYd3Gp
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A sacrifice that ended a war.145Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡovzR2Nu5h7
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I stare at my reflection in the mirror — at Ariana’s face — and a strange chill runs down my spine.145Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4H0w0VtKFu
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“Great,” I mutter. “History lesson with ominous foreshadowing. Love that.”1234 copyright protection141ＰＥＮＡＮＡwPKHKdvyaF 尼

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